Countable & Uncountable Nouns

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a2215

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countable-uncountable-nouns

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Nouns

Niveaux

Secondaire 1

Secondaire 2

Matière

Anglais

Tags

nouns

countable nouns

uncountable nouns

Contenu

Liens

Type

Ancre

Titre

Countable Nouns

Ancre

countable-nouns

Type

Ancre

Titre

Uncountable Nouns

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uncountable-nouns

Titre (niveau 2)

Countable Nouns

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countable-nouns

Contenu

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Anything that can be counted is considered a countable noun. It can be a singular noun or a plural noun.

Contenu

Corps

Singular countable nouns	Plural countable nouns
a kangaroo	three kangaroos
an airplane	two airplanes

Titre (niveau 2)

Uncountable Nouns

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uncountable-nouns

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Anything that cannot be easily separated or counted is considered as an uncountable noun. It is referred to as a mass, a whole, or a concept.

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Titre (niveau 3)

Some Uncountable Nouns Refer to:

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some-uncountable-nouns-refer-to

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	Examples:
weather	rain lightning wind snow
ideas and experiences	advice fun progress information
materials and substances	water milk gold cement
groups or collections of things	equipment furniture garbage luggage
abstract concepts	love luck happiness music

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Titre

Countable & Uncountable Nouns Exercise

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countable-uncountable-nouns-exercise

Exercice

Countable & Uncountable Nouns Exercise

Largeur de l'exercice

720

Hauteur de l'exercice

720

Titre (niveau 2)

Using Articles and Adjectives

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using-articles-and-adjectives

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Corps

Pay attention to the articles and the adjectives you use with different nouns. Some can be used with only countable or only uncountable nouns.

Corps

	Used with Countable Nouns Only
a/an	a car, an elephant
a/an = one object	a car = 1 car an elephant = 1 elephant
many	many books, many situations
many = a large number	many books = a large number of books
few	few problems, few countries
a few	a few questions, a few issues
few = a small number	few countries = a small number of countries

Corps

	Used with Uncountable Nouns Only
much	much food, much time
much = a large quantity	much food = a large quantity of food
little	little meat, little patience
a little bit of	a little bit of snow
little = a small quantity	a little bit of snow = a small quantity of snow

Titre (niveau 3)

Articles and Adjectives Used with Countable and Uncountable Nouns

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articles-and-adjectives-used-with-countable-and-uncountable-nouns

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	Used With Countable Nouns	Used with Uncountable Nouns
the	the tigers, the planes	the cheese, the knowledge
some	some forks, some tables	some time, some news
For example	the 5 planes some planes the & some = more than 1 when used with countable nouns	the cheese some cheese the & some = a certain quantity when used with uncountable nouns
any	any workers, any beliefs	any advice, any soap
For example	Are there any workers left? There aren’t any workers left. any = more than 1 or none when used with countable nouns	Do you have any soap? I don’t have any soap. any = a certain quantity or none when used with uncountable nouns
a lot of	a lot of animals, a lot of employees	a lot of furniture, a lot of equipment
enough	enough restaurants, enough plates	enough money, enough food
plenty of	plenty of differences	plenty of trouble
For example	a lot of employees a lot of = a large number when used with countable nouns	enough money enough = a large quantity when used with uncountable nouns

Contenu

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The word hair is normally uncountable in English, however, when used to refer to individual hairs, it becomes countable.

For example:

Uncountable	Countable
She has brown hair.	I have a few white hairs.

Titre

In Context Countable & Uncountable Nouns Exercise

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in-context-countable-uncountable-nouns-exercise

Exercice

In Context Countable & Uncountable Nouns Exercise

Largeur de l'exercice

720

Hauteur de l'exercice

720

Titre (niveau 2)

For Advanced Users

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for-advanced-users

Contenu

Titre

Countable Noun Phrases for Uncountable Nouns

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Sometimes, we can use countable noun phrases to replace uncountable nouns.

Uncountable Nouns	Countable Noun Phrases
luggage	a suitcase, a bag
travel	an adventure, a trip, a journey
money	a dollar, a coin, a sum of money
meat	a piece of meat

Uncountable nouns cannot be used when referring to a specific number of objects/things. You need to use countable noun phrases.

For example:

Inappropriate Usage	Accurate Usage
I’m bringing three ~~luggage~~ on the airplane.	I’m bringing three suitcases on the airplane.
I went on five ~~travel~~ last year.	I went on five trips last year.
This computer costs 1000 ~~money~~.	This computer costs 1000 dollars.
They will eat two ~~meat~~ tonight.	They will eat two pieces of meat tonight

Titre

Nouns with Different Meanings

Contenu

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nouns-different-meanings

Corps

Some nouns can have different meanings depending on their use.

	Countable Use	Uncountable Use
glass	I broke a glass on the kitchen floor yesterday.	Glass is easy to break.
glass	In this case, glass refers to the cup.	In this case, glass refers to the material.
iron	You need an iron to make your shirt look nice.	People used to believe that boats made of iron would sink.
iron	In this case, an iron refers to the appliance.	In this case, iron refers to the material.
light	We set up the new lights in the studio last week.	The light outside today is beautiful.
light	In this case, a light refers to the lighting equipment.	In this case, light refers to the general brightness during the day.
paper	I handed in my last paper of the term.	Many companies try to use less paper every year.
paper	In this case, paper refers to a school assignment.	In this case, paper refers to the material.
time	I have watched this movie four times before.	Time is precious.
time	In this case, time refers to the number of occurrences.	In this case, time refers to the general concept.

Titre

Uncountable Nouns Used in a Countable Way

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Some abstract nouns are sometimes used countably. It happens when the uncountable noun has a more global meaning and the countable use is more specific.

	Uncountable Use	Countable Use
education	Education is important. Education here refers to the general concept.	My first child had a very expensive education at a prestigious school. Education here refers to a specific education offered by a school.
cinema	Cinema is considered the 7th form of art. Cinema here refers to movie making.	There are 5 different cinemas in this city. Cinema here refers to a movie theater.
depression	Depression is a serious mental illness. Depression here refers to mental illness.	This country has suffered from many depressions in the past centuries. Depression here refers to major events causing economic crashes.
freedom	This person enjoyed freedom for the first time in years. Freedom here refers to the concept of being free.	This teenager was permitted multiple freedoms that most didn’t have. Freedom here refers to individual liberties.

Titre (niveau 2)